Got some old CD’s? Some spare steel wire, some tape and a couple of finishing nails? Then you too can build a simple postal scale. What better way to recycle some bits of things that would normally end up in a landfill? → Read More
Charlie Sobcov, an eight grader from Canada fell in love with birds on a trip to Costa Rica four years ago. He learned about decreasing bird populations due to global warming and another killer: windows. He found out that 500 million birds are killed by impact with windows annually in the US, Canada and Mexico. → Read More
Fox Interactive Media is eliminating more than just free lunches. News Corp’s digital arm is trimming nearly 100 jobs across several business units, including Photobucket, MySpace, Scout Media, Rotten Tomatoes, and corporate. The total comes to a little under 5 percent of FIM’s domestic U.S. workforce, and about 3 percent of its global workforce of 2,900. We have added the amount to our Layoff Tracker.
Although MySpace employs 1,600 of those workers, a check with sources close to FIM suggests that the vast majority of job cuts (80 to 90 percent) are happening elsewhere. One of the hardest hit business units is Photobucket, where 22 people are losing their jobs. The corporate offices are also absorbing a substantial portion of the layoffs. → Read More
dreamGEAR’s WarBeast guitar controller is something wicked. I’m not into heavy metal or anything, but this thing looks badass and it’s life-size. I’ve never heard of B.C. Rich but they collaborated on the project and did a bang up job. The neck is removable and it has an enhanced strum bar and whammy bar. The Star Power dedicated button is a nice touch as well. And it’s wireless! The WarBeast goes for $100. → Read More
Have no fear, the Obama administration is here! Today, the Senate voted to postpone the digital switch from February 17th to June 12th. → Read More
When I received the Garmin nuvi 880 for review, my initial reaction was a lackluster “Oh great, another GPS.” As usual, I opened it up and started using it without reading the manual. After using it for a few days, I hadn’t really changed my opinion. After reading the manual, though, and really taking advantage of what this GPS offers, my tune changed considerably. → Read More
Among the millions of apps being released hourly in the App store, there truly are apps worth buying, and those that not worth wasting a glance at. iShoot ($2.99) is one of the best and brightest among its craptastic peers. One of many turn based tank fighting games, iShoot has proved its worthiness by sky rocketing into the #1 spot almost overnight, with his iShoot lite following close behind with the #1 spot in free apps. Creator Ethan Nicholas has recently enjoyed so much success from iShoot that he quit his day job in order to further his app-development career. → Read More
Cubic Telecom, the TechCrunch40 company behind the traveler-friendly SIM card MAXroam, has partnered with Dopplr to sell the card through its online store. The Dopplr-branded SIM card will be available for a reduced rate of €45 (down five euro from its normal price).
Both companies have a strong travel focus: Cubic Telecom’s MAXroam allows users to use their unlocked cell phones in over 180 countries, saving around 60-80% on roaming charges. Dopplr offers a social network for travelers looking to meet up with their friends. The site will use your travel schedule to determine when you’ll be in the same area as a friend, and then help you set up a get-together. → Read More
Those TechFluff.tv people have another episode. This time it features Spotify, Tweetdeck and Chinese web space expert, Shakil Khan, among others. → Read More
Best Buy is ready to take orders for the Palm Treo Pro for those not willing to wait for the Sprint-subsidized model. It’s going to take a special (read: loaded) gadget freak to plop down seven large on a WinMob phone that’s backordered until the middle of February which is when the phone is rumored to launch on Sprint anyway → Read More
Mobile World Congress spins up in a couple of weeks time but like any good event, the real action takes place ‘Off Broadway” at the fringe events. And that’s not just because TechCrunch is running an event: TechCrunchTalk Mobile 2.0. One of the main one this year is The Mobile Peer Awards from the Mobile Monday global non-profit network. They have picked their finalists for the awards from a list which started at 162, went to 42 and is now down to the final 20. It’s necessarily from a wide cross-section of countries because each MM chapter picks ‘their’ winner. Hence why there is only one finalist from Silicon Valley – Soonr – but that means you also get to hear about Aradiom from Istanbul, among others. Some of the trends are clear: location-based services, events, social networking, producivity apps, app stores, enterprise and VOIP. The full list of finalists appears after the jump. The finalists are divided in two categories: early-stage and emerging. Registration to attend the event is now open here. Early Stage Startups: Addict Digital Media – Mobile Monday Buenos Aires aka-aki networks GmbH – MobileMonday Berlin Babajob.com – MobileMonday Bangalore Big in Japan Inc. – MobileMonday Dallas bioLocate – MobileMonday Jakarta Dial2Do – MobileMonday Dublin Fortumo – MobileMonday Estonia Mob4Hire – MobileMonday Vancouver Tellmewhere – MobileMonday Paris Xumii – MobileMonday Sydney Emerging Startups Aradiom – MobileMonday Istanbul fring – MobileMonday Tel Aviv Getjar Networks – MobileMonday Lithuania Keynetik – MobileMonday Washington DC Mobintech A/S – MobileMonday Copenhagen PopCatcher AB – MobileMonday Sweden Soonr – MobileMonday Silicon Valley Unkasoft Advergaming – MobileMonday Madrid → Read More
Heads up, freaks. There’s a trojan inside a certain Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Mac crack generator that’s spreading around. (Type “photoshop cs4 mac crack” in The PirateBay for the offending file.) It’s a variant of a trojan that was first discovered last week, so that means this trojan is getting around. → Read More
Batman Begins and The Dark Knight’s executive producer Michael Uslan has just signed on for the next installment in what we’re all hoping is Nolan’s third Batman flick. Ulsan expects the new movie to hit theaters in 2011. → Read More
How many times can you tease Sony about the state of the PS3 before you become bored? The news that Bethesda won’t be developing DLC for the PS3 version of Fallout 3 has prompted me to ask this Very Important question. → Read More
The almost-impossible-to-find Wii Fit is in stock at Amazon right now for $89.99 with free shipping. I checked earlier today and it was out of stock, so they must have just gotten some. → Read More
Oh man, this guy totally read my mind. Although I shoot with a Rebel XSi so I don’t have to deal with this stuff on a regular basis, point and shoots are full of useless and/or legacy features that really ought to go. This list over at Photography Bay gets it right, and I’ve got a couple of my own. → Read More
Perhaps it’s because I’m stuck in a Munich hotel with the flu, but this most recent round of rumors about Steve Jobs undergoing surgery today is annoying me more than normal. The entire report is based on something someone heard someone else say at a party. That kind of stuff is fine when it’s a funding rumor and the flimsiness of it is disclosed. But we’re talking about someone’s very personal life here – someone who has repeatedly requested privacy. The fact that CNET, taking a few moments away from their Pulitzer Prize winning effort to determine the most hated person on the Internet, jumped on this so eagerly is particularly disappointing.
Our own source, who is significantly more believable than some person at some party, says Jobs is in the office today in meetings and most definitely not undergoing surgery. Does that mean he might go under the knife tomorrow instead? Do we really need to know?
Let Steve Jobs do his job and live his life. Just because you can write a story doesn’t mean you have to. → Read More
Buying a plasma TV can be so frustrating. First, you as the informed consumer, know that plamsa TVs generally produce a superior picture verse LCDs but sometimes TV salesmen don’t agree. That being said, this guy managed to buy a plasma from Sears and turned down the $300 three-year service plan only to have the company call him a few days later to pitch the plan again. This time though, the rep ‘informed’ the buyer that plasma TV’s suck (or something like that) and need to be ‘recharged’ every five years at a cost of $500 so the $300 service plan is well justified. Thankfully, the customer turned down the service plan ’cause plasma TVs do not need recharging. → Read More
Best Buy is ready to take orders for the Palm Treo Pro for those not willing to wait for the Sprint-subsidized model. It’s going to take a special (read: loaded) gadget freak to plop down seven large on a WinMob phone that’s backordered until the middle of February which is when the phone is rumored to launch on Sprint anyway. Granted, that person might be purchasing the phone outside of contract and will have to spend that much anyway. If that’s the case, the Palm Treo Pro seems to be available for immediate in-store pickup at most locations. Run, Palm fanboy, run! Best Buy via AOL → Read More
Netbook manufacturers, I beg of you: please focus on increasing screen resolution before adding any more features. This 1024×600 business has gone on long enough. → Read More
